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U.S. Senate hopeful Evan McMullin and his wife were allegedly threatened at gunpoint while on the campaign trail back in April, according to several media reports.
“The couple were on their way home from the April 10 campaign event in southern Utah when they were ‘followed, chased and threatened at gunpoint’ by the 44-year-old man, who was driving a ‘large pickup truck,’” documents The Salt Lake Tribune obtained state.
McMullin filed a victim impact statement on Wednesday that was obtained by The Tribune. It reportedly says the man “aggressively followed” the couple while they were driving home to Utah County, at one point forcing their car into oncoming traffic.
The man then allegedly pulled alongside the couple’s car and brandished a firearm, “pointing it toward us in a threatening way,” McMullin wrote.
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WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 18: Evan McMullin, Founder of Stand Up Republic, speaks at an “Impeach and Remove” rally at the U.S. Capitol on December 18, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Larry French/Getty Images for MoveOn.org)
The suspect has been identified as Jack Aaron Whelchel by KSTU-TV. He was charged with a class-A misdemeanor count of threatening or using a dangerous weapon and a disorderly conduct infraction.
Third party candidate Evan McMullin, an independent, talks to the press as he campaigns in Salt Lake City, Utah, October 12, 2016. REUTERS/George Frey/File Photo
(REUTERS/George Frey/File Photo)
Whelchel’s attorney, Brixton Hakes, told CNN his client disputes McMullin’s version of events, insisting a firearm was never aimed at the couple.
“He never brandished a firearm,” Hakes said.
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The lawyer did say his client placed a firearm on the center console of the vehicle during the incident, and Whelchel “thought he was being followed” by McMullin. The attorney acknowledged it was an incorrect assumption, and expects the case to go to a jury trial following a scheduled hearing next month.
